Abraham Lincoln quotes on life, education, and freedom
Looking for inspirational Abraham Lincoln quotes that represent his character and beliefs?
March 11, 2021 6:00 AM EST
These Abraham Lincoln quotes prove why many people call him one of the most influential leaders in American history.
In the comments below, share which quote is your favorite.
The 16th president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln, is one of history’s most outstanding men.
He was best known for his role in the emancipation of slaves and keeping the Union together.
By the end of his presidency, more than 4 million former slaves were no longer legally considered property.
However, his most enduring legacy is the values he left behind.
He believed in patience, hard work, integrity, and education.
Lincoln strove for a democracy that was “of the people, by the people, for the people.”
Although his personal life was filled with struggle, he still managed to embody a man of wisdom and inspiration – especially during a time when the country was about to be divided.
Despite his sudden death, people from all over the world remember him and try to practice his philosophies still to this day.
Born: February 12th, 1809
Assassinated: April 15th,1865
Find inspiration from his many wise words courtesy of these Abraham Lincoln quotes from his most famous speeches and writings.
Check out our most popular quote article, a list of short inspirational quotes for daily inspiration.
Our inspirational quote category page has even more inspirational and educational quotes.
Inspirational Abraham Lincoln quotes on success, life, and education
1. “Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln Quotes Happiness Abraham Lincoln Quotes](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-1.jpg)
You will also enjoy our article on Dirty Harry quotes.
2. “The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time.” – Abraham Lincoln
If you’re enjoying these quotes, make sure to read our collection of one day at a time quotes to live by.
![Abraham Lincoln Quotes on the future](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-2.jpg)
3. “Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln Quotes Abraham Lincoln Quotes on character](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-3.jpg)
Abraham Lincoln quotes about his momma!
4. “All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on motherhood](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-4.jpg)
Quotes by Abraham Lincoln about preparation
5. “Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the ax.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes chopping down a tree](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-5.jpg)
6. “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on foolishness](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-6.jpg)
Quotes by Abraham Lincoln about responsibility
7. “You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on responsibility](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-7.jpg)
8. “I am not bound to win, but I am bound to be true. I am not bound to succeed, but I am bound to live by the light that I have. I must stand with anybody that stands right, and stand with him while he is right, and part with him when he goes wrong.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on conviction](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-8.jpg)
9. “Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on work](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-9.jpg)
Quotes by Abraham Lincoln about life and success
10. “In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on years](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-10.jpg)
11. “The philosophy of the school room in one generation will be the philosophy of government in the next.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on philosophy](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-11.jpg)
12. “Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God’s side, for God is always right.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on God](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-12.jpg)
Quotes by Abraham Lincoln about doing your best
13. “I do the very best I know how – the very best I can; and I mean to keep on doing so until the end.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on being the best](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-13.jpg)
14. “Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on succeeding](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-14.jpg)
15. “Don’t worry when you are not recognized, but strive to be worthy of recognition.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on recognition](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-15.jpg)
Famous Abraham Lincoln quotes about failure
16. “My great concern is not whether you have failed, but whether you are content with your failure.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on failure](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-16.jpg)
17. “Whatever you are, be a good one.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on being good](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-17.jpg)
18. “Am I not destroying my enemies when I make friends of them?” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on reconstruction](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-18.jpg)
19. “I’m a slow walker, but I never walk back.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes moving forward](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-19.jpg)
20. “Be sure you put your feet in the right place, then stand firm.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on sticking to convictions](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-20.jpg)
Abraham Lincoln Quotes about leadership and being a man
21. “I remember my mother’s prayers and they have always followed me. They have clung to me all my life.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on prayers](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-21.jpg)
22. “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on a house divided](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-22.jpg)
23. “I never had a policy; I have just tried to do my very best each and every day.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on policy](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-23.jpg)
Famous Abraham Lincoln quotes about success
24. “That some achieve great success, is proof to all that others can achieve it as well.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on success](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-24.jpg)
25. “Everybody likes a compliment.” – Abraham Lincoln
![Abraham Lincoln quotes Abraham Lincoln quotes on compliments](images/abraham-lincoln-quotes-25.jpg)
26. “Let not him who is houseless pull down the house of another, but let him work diligently and build one for himself, thus by example assuring that his own shall be safe from violence when built.” – Abraham Lincoln
27. “The way for a young man to rise is to improve himself in every way he can, never suspecting that anybody wishes to hinder him.” – Abraham Lincoln
28. “The things I want to know are in books; my best friend is the man who’ll get me a book I ain’t read.” – Abraham Lincoln
29. “Important principles may, and must, be inflexible.” – Abraham Lincoln
30. “If there is anything that a man can do well, I say let him do it. Give him a chance.” – Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln quotes about pride
31. “I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him.” – Abraham Lincoln
32. “When I am getting ready to reason with a man, I spend one-third of my time thinking about myself and what I am going to say and two-thirds about him and what he is going to say.” – Abraham Lincoln
33. “Every man is said to have his peculiar ambition. Whether it be true or not, I can say for one that I have no other so great as that of being truly esteemed of my fellow men, by rendering myself worthy of their esteem.” – Abraham Lincoln
If you’re enjoying these quotes, read our collection of ambition quotes to set your sights sky high.
34. “I don’t know who my grandfather was; I am much more concerned to know what his grandson will be.” – Abraham Lincoln
35. “You have to do your own growing no matter how tall your grandfather was.” – Abraham Lincoln
36. “The probability that we may fail in the struggle ought not to deter us from the support of a cause we believe to be just.” – Abraham Lincoln
37. “All my life I have tried to pluck a thistle and plant a flower wherever the flower would grow in thought and mind.” – Abraham Lincoln
38. “If we could first know where we are, and whither we are tending, we could then better judge what to do, and how to do it.” – Abraham Lincoln
39. “I have always found that mercy bears richer fruits than strict justice.” – Abraham Lincoln
40. “He has a right to criticize, who has a heart to help.” – Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln quotes and sayings to help you be a better person
41. “Tact is the ability to describe others as they see themselves.” – Abraham Lincoln
42. “Surely God would not have created such a being as man, with an ability to grasp the infinite, to exist only for a day! No, no, man was made for immortality.” – Abraham Lincoln
43. “A friend is one who has the same enemies as you have.” – Abraham Lincoln
Make sure to also check out these quotes by famous people about life, love and success.
44. “Public sentiment is everything. With public sentiment, nothing can fail. Without it, nothing can succeed.” – Abraham Lincoln
45. “Let us have faith that right makes might, and in that faith, let us, to the end, dare to do our duty as we understand it.” – Abraham Lincoln
46. “I have been driven many times upon my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My own wisdom and that of all about me seemed insufficient for that day.” – Abraham Lincoln
47. “Man is not the only animal who labors; but he is the only one who improves his workmanship.” – Abraham Lincoln
48. “I am rather inclined to silence, and whether that be wise or not, it is at least more unusual nowadays to find a man who can hold his tongue than to find one who cannot.” – Abraham Lincoln
49. “Leave nothing for tomorrow which can be done today.” – Abraham Lincoln
50. “In this sad world of ours sorrow comes to all and it often comes with bitter agony. Perfect relief is not possible except with time. You cannot now believe that you will ever feel better. But this is not true. You are sure to be happy again. Knowing this, truly believing it will make you less miserable now. I have had enough experience to make this statement.” – Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln quotes on education and wisdom
51. “I do not think much of a man who is not wiser today than he was yesterday.” – Abraham Lincoln
52. “Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.” – Abraham Lincoln
53. “Upon the subject of education, not presuming to dictate any plan or system respecting it, I can only say that I view it as the most important subject which we as a people can be engaged in.” – Abraham Lincoln
54. “A new book is like a friend that I have yet to meet.” – Abraham Lincoln
55. “Mr. Clay’s education, to the end of his life, was comparatively limited. I say “to the end of his life,” because I have understood that, from time to time, he added something to his education during the greater part of his whole life. Mr. Clay’s lack of a more perfect early education, however, it may be regretted generally, teaches at least one profitable lesson; it teaches that in this country, one can scarcely be so poor, but that, if he will, he can acquire sufficient education to get through the world respectably.” – Abraham Lincoln
If you’re enjoying these quotes, make sure to read our collection of education quotes about learning and success.
56. “A capacity, and taste, for reading, gives access to whatever has already been discovered by others. It is the key, or one of the keys, to the already solved problems. And not only so. It gives a relish, and facility, for successfully pursuing the [yet] unsolved ones.” – Abraham Lincoln
Memorable Abraham Lincoln quotes
57. “No man has a good enough memory to be a successful liar.” ― Abraham Lincoln
58. “Women are the only people I am afraid of who I never thought would hurt me.” ― Abraham Lincoln
59. “It has been my experience that folks who have no vices have very few virtues.” – Abraham Lincoln
60. “No man is good enough to govern another man without the other’s consent.” – Abraham Lincoln
61. “Every person’s happiness is their own responsibility.” – Abraham Lincoln
62. “You can tell the greatness of someone by what makes them angry.” – Abraham Lincoln
63. “Life is hard but so very beautiful.” – Abraham Lincoln
64. “If you would win a man to your cause first convince him that you are his sincere friend.” – Abraham Lincoln
65. “To ease another’s heartache is to forget one’s own.” – Abraham Lincoln
Insightful Abraham Lincoln quotes
66. “Nothing will divert me from my purpose.”― Abraham Lincoln
67. “Gentlemen, why do you not laugh? With the fearful strain that is upon me day and night, if I did not laugh, I should die. ”― Abraham Lincoln
68. “If any man tells you he loves America, yet hates labor, he is a liar. If any man tells you he trusts America, yet fears labor, he is a fool.”― Abraham Lincoln
69. “Truth is generally the best vindication against slander.”― Abraham Lincoln
70. “Don’t worry when you are not recognized but strive to be worthy of recognition.”― Abraham Lincoln
71. “Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.”
― Abraham Lincoln
72. “I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go.”― Abraham Lincoln
73. “I believe that people should fight for what they believe and only what they believe.”― Abraham Lincoln
74. “Education does not mean teaching people what they do not know. It means teaching them to behave as they do not behave.”― Abraham Lincoln
75. “Believing everyone is dangerous, but believing nobody is more dangerous.”― Abraham Lincoln
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More Abraham Lincoln quotes and sayings
76. “America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.” – Abraham Lincoln
77. “I’m a success today because I had a friend who believed in me and I didn’t have the heart to let him down.” – Abraham Lincoln
78. “Books serve to show a man that those original thoughts of his aren’t very new after all.” – Abraham Lincoln
79. “Those who deny freedom to others, deserve it not for themselves.” – Abraham Lincoln
80. “Whenever I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally.” – Abraham Lincoln
81. “There are no bad pictures; that’s just how your face looks sometimes.” – Abraham Lincoln
82. “I can see how it might be possible for a man to look down upon the earth and be an atheist, but I cannot conceive how a man could look up into the heavens and say there is no God.” – Abraham Lincoln
83. “Those who look for the bad in people will surely find it.” – Abraham Lincoln
84. “I don’t like that man. I must get to know him better.” – Abraham Lincoln
85. “When you reach the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on.” – Abraham Lincoln
Which of these Abraham Lincoln quotes was your favorite?
For those unfamiliar with his life story, it might be difficult to believe at first that there were times when Abraham Lincoln almost gave up.
But it’s true.
He had a tough childhood, and also faced sorrow later in his adult life when three of his four children died.
Still, despite all the hardship he faced, he let time heal his wounds and proceeded to be successful in his life that was cut short far too soon.
Hopefully, these Abraham Lincoln quotes not only gave you hope, but motivation to move forward with life – just as this historic United States president has done.
Which Abraham Lincoln quote was your favorite?
What other Abraham Lincoln quotes would you add to the list?
Let us know in the comment section below.